Bay of Quinte Bus Tour

Stop #1

Sprague Foods Limited is a BRC certified facility employing the most advanced in-container sterilization and cooking system in the world to optimize cooking quality while preserving nutritional qualities in both metal and glass containers.

Organically certified, Sprague Foods produces private label products for Canada, the United States of America and other global markets.

In addition to items in their product list they provide complete service including: Product Development, Thermal Process Development, Nutritional Analysis, Label Compliance and Transportation to all Canadian & US destinations.

The success of this company is attributed to several factors including a strong emphasis in all four generations of Sprague’s on innovation in the area of food science and technology and the culinary arts.

Stop #2

Meet Ontario Craft Maltsters Devin & Leslie Huffman. Barn Owl Malt is located on a small family farm on the outskirts of Belleville, Ontario. Devin & Leslie had every intention of reviving their farm to become a family business, but it took some time to decide what their niche would be. Being strong advocates of the local food movement, they knew this would be a major focus of their business. Their love of beer made them well aware of the increase in craft breweries, especially here in Ontario. They started noticing the movement to local ingredients showing a presence within craft brewing. Breweries were advertising that their beer was being locally brewed, and contain local hops, local honey, even local water, but there wasn’t much mention of malt, a major ingredient in craft beers. They saw an opportunity to be working both with local agriculture and brewing, while providing a new local market. With a lot of research, training and perseverance they have put a lot of effort into perfecting their craft.

The floor malting process is very hands on, requiring continual observation and tending to produce the best malt that can with every batch. This is why they’ve chosen to build their malt house on their farm, always within reach.
Our malt house was specifically designed and built in 2015 to suit the needs of their small batch floor malting processes. All of the major equipment is unique, either built from their own designs, like their wood fueled kiln or repurposed from other industries like dairy, maple syrup and ice production. It has taken a lot of planning and creativity to bring this malt house from a dream to a reality, something they are very proud of.

Wild Card Brewing Company is a family run business. Established in 2015 and owed by Nate Card, Wild Card prides itself on producing quality craft beer showcasing local ingredients. They produce small, hand-crafted batches of beer with a focus on variety and experimentation. They provide customers with an ever-rotating selection of brews that utilize an often random array of local goods. Lavender, raspberries, black currants and gooseberries were used this summer from local producers. The team also prides themselves on achieving the highest possible level of environmental sustainability.

Stop #3

Meet Darold and Kara Enright who own and operate the Enright Cattle Company, a 95-acre farm near Tweed, Ontario. They are both fourth-generation farmers. They breed and raise purebred black and red Simmental cattle. All their calves are born on the farm where they raise them on a grass diet until they are large enough to be weaned. Then they move them a few kilometres down the road, to Langevin Farms, which is owned and operated by Kara’s parents, Don and Chris Langevin. They have been farming in Tweed for over 30 years. Their cattle stay here until they are fully grown. Between the two farms, they plant, grow and harvest all of the crops they need to feed their cattle. They use no artificial hormones.

Thanks to their unique barcode system, they can trace every cut of meat they produce. This helps them to farm more efficiently and lets them use customer feedback to constantly improve their practices. Enright Cattle Company also has created a line of leather goods such as purses and wallets. Leather is of the highest grade, tanned right here in Ontario. Each piece is carefully designed by Canadian artisan James M. Brooks so as to minimize the number of stitched panels and limit the use of hardware. Their beautiful products are bench-made in very limited production runs.

They feel a strong commitment to their customers and their community. They are also strongly committed to the preservation of rural life and the improvement of agriculture. A past director of the Canadian and the Ontario Simmental Association, Kara currently serves as a director of the Hastings County Cattlemen’s Association.

Stop #4

Located on the very edge of the Canadian Shield – ‘Potter Settlement’s sandy, highly mineral terroir and organically-grown grapes offers a unique selection of delicious and intensely flavourful wines found nowhere else in the world.

High granite outcroppings surrounding their vines provide thermal mass creating a micro-climate which protects their grapes from wind and cold – as well as giving impressive views to their guests. ‘Potter Settlement’ is a marriage of rustic, old-world charm with up-to-date winemaking techniques.

Great care and painstaking attention is being paid to ensure that everything about the winery is created custom -by hand – to the last detail to capture the essence of an earlier time; that modern environmental considerations such as low-impact organic farming, solar and geo-thermal energy are utilized to reduce their carbon footprint; and, most importantly, to ensure that their wines are perfected to the highest standard for a unique, unrivaled and enjoyable experience. Impressing and pleasing their future guests is their aim, and they’re currently working hard to reach that goal before they open their doors to the public. Potter Settlement Winery was founded in 2000 by Sandor, Ken and Maureen Johnson on land that has been owned throughout the generations by the family since the early 1800’s.

Stop #5

The Donnan family have been at Donnandale Farms since 1917. Donnandale Farms is becoming more and more self-sufficient. All the food for the cows is grown on the farm, except protein and mineral supplements, and they have been able to gradually reduce their energy inputs by first putting in a corn-fuelled boiler and now by putting in an anaerobic digester. The Donnan’s look to the future, and are the third farm in Ontario to put in a biogas anaerobic digester. The digester will convert manure from the cows and other organic waste into energy, bedding material and nutrients for the fields. The system they are putting in will provided 500 kilowatts of electricity, which is enough to power 400 households. They will power their farms and put the extra energy into the grid, selling it to Ontario Hydro. Setting up the anaerobic digester gives the Donnan’s the potential to diversify into selling compost and bedding material. They find going green makes sound business sense.

About Us

We are all about building relationships and supporting local food in Eastern Ontario.